CPS 3000 Break

[xylenol15]

Oh, I agree! Epoxy probably won't work as well as a rubber ring. More importantly, using a rubber ring instead of a glue bond as a seal will greatly facilitate future valve maintenance for reasons I stated above. If I bond the valve casing back together with JB Weld opening it again will be a real pain, whilst polyurethane glue will make the original glue job look totally pristine by comparison (that stuff has an extreme tendency to foam). Thanks so much for your input guys, I wouldn't have so much confidence with this repair if not for your support every step of the way. I'll open the casing tomorrow and post pics for other 3000 users beleaguered by problems in the future, and because it's always cool to see the insides of these things.
Edit: Cool, a second page...

[xylenol15]

Eureka! Of course, now that the valve's open I don't see the problem . Maybe it's because I've never opened a super soaker before... .
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...l15/Xyl013.jpg
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...l15/Xyl014.jpg
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...l15/Xyl015.jpg
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...l15/Xyl016.jpg
http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...l15/Xyl017.jpg
The only thing that looks out of place is the mildew, which feels even slimier than it looks. Peroxide time! Too bad hydrogen peroxide at a mere 10% concentration in that chart I looked appears to degrade latex. The resistance of the tubing to H2O2 is listed as "good", not "excellent", of course, for short term exposure the "good" rating should be sufficient. http://www.primelineindustries.com/n...compchart.html
On the plus side, it looks like it affects latex less than chlorine bleach, so the adventurous ones may want to give it a try. (I will. ) Anyway, if you can see a problem with the valve I'd like to know.

[Silence]

Perhaps the mildew was preventing good contact and a good seal? That's the only thing I can think of for the moment. All I can suggest is to play around with it a bit and try to see if the O-ring had come back on after the fact. Otherwise, (although it's a bit late to say it,) there might have just been some problem preventing the trigger (and you when testing) from pulling on the valve plunger. Make sure the trigger system works, that nothing is broken, etc...there's an excellent chance the pin was at fault all along. Because the gun isn't in front of me, there is unfortunately nothing much I can say. Good luck with the repair, and let's hope somebody else has something better to suggest.

So you could try putting it back together again in order to check out the trigger system. Note: the trigger system often functions best when the internals are in their correct places and when the soaker is together.

[xylenol15]

Okay, thanks. I'll reassemble the gun after I decide on a glue, JB Weld or Elmer's polyurethane to repair the broken orange piece. I'll also need a small square of rubber, maybe Home Depot. Hopefully this thing will work again, albeit for mysterious reasons unbeknownst to me... . I don't trust that pin though, I suspect as you did about it not pulling the plunger, although it appears to now.

[Silence]

Try using a strip of metal or something as used in plastic trigger repairs (it's an article on the site) to help strengthen the pin, since glue (yes, even plastic glue) isn't always the best for tension. Just make sure everything is aligned correctly!

If you need to make the pulling wire better, just bend a new one from a metal coat hanger.

[xylenol15]

Ah, thank you, I forgot about reinforcement. I think the pulling wire is fine though, though I wish I had enough experience to be 100% sure.